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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. mark — a grade
  6. row — a line
  7. wound — an injury
  8. lean — thin
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. bore — to tire
  11. game — a match
  12. press — to push
  13. press — a publisher
  14. press — newspapers
  15. lean — to bend
  16. game — wild animals
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. mark — a trace
  19. bore — to drill
  20. row — to paddle
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. snap — to click
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. wound — an injury

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com